U.S. patent application number 15/724846 was filed with the patent office on 2018-06-21 for qos configuration based on channel quality.
The applicant listed for this patent is QUALCOMM Incorporated. Invention is credited to Srinivasan BALASUBRAMANIAN, Aziz GHOLMIEH, Yue YANG.
Application Number | 20180176830 15/724846 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 62562280 |
Filed Date | 2018-06-21 |
United States Patent
Application |
20180176830 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
YANG; Yue ; et al. |
June 21, 2018 |
QOS CONFIGURATION BASED ON CHANNEL QUALITY
Abstract
Certain aspects of the present disclosure relate to methods and
apparatus for quality of service (QoS) configuration for wireless
communications. Certain aspects provide a method for wireless
communication by a base station. The method generally includes
determining a channel quality for a user equipment communicating on
a wireless channel. The method further includes selecting one or
more values for the one or more parameters for providing QoS to the
user equipment in a range of parameter values based on the
determined channel quality.
Inventors: |
YANG; Yue; (San Diego,
CA) ; GHOLMIEH; Aziz; (Del Mar, CA) ;
BALASUBRAMANIAN; Srinivasan; (San Diego, CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
QUALCOMM Incorporated |
San Diego |
CA |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
62562280 |
Appl. No.: |
15/724846 |
Filed: |
October 4, 2017 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
62436862 |
Dec 20, 2016 |
|
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|
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04W 28/0268 20130101;
H04W 88/085 20130101; H04W 28/24 20130101; H04W 24/08 20130101;
H04L 43/0894 20130101; H04L 43/0852 20130101; H04W 24/10 20130101;
H04W 72/08 20130101; H04L 43/0829 20130101 |
International
Class: |
H04W 28/24 20060101
H04W028/24; H04W 24/08 20060101 H04W024/08 |
Claims
1. A method for quality of service (QoS) configuration for wireless
communications, the method comprising: determining a channel
quality for a user equipment communicating on a wireless channel;
and selecting one or more values for one or more parameters for
providing QoS to the user equipment in a range of parameter values
based on the determined channel quality.
2. The method of claim 1, further comprising assigning the user
equipment to a class of a plurality of classes, wherein each of the
plurality of classes corresponds to a different range of parameter
values for providing the QoS.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the range of parameter values in
which the one or more values for the one or more parameters for
providing the QoS to the user equipment are selected corresponds to
the assigned class.
4. The method of claim 2, further comprising providing, for each of
the plurality of classes, a range for each of the one or more
values for the one or more parameters for providing the QoS to the
user equipment at each channel quality.
5. The method of claim 2, wherein the different range of parameter
values partially overlap for a first class of the plurality of
classes and a second class of the plurality of classes.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more parameters
comprise one or more of packet delay budget, prioritized bit rate,
guaranteed bit rate, or packet error loss rate.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the channel quality
comprises receiving a channel quality metric from the user
equipment.
8. The method of claim 1, further comprising allocating resources
on the wireless channel to the user equipment based on the selected
one or more values for the one or more parameters for providing the
QoS to the user equipment.
9. The method of claim 8, further comprising providing a range for
each of the selected one or more values for the one or more
parameters for providing the QoS to the user equipment at each
channel quality, wherein allocating the resources comprises
allocating the resources on the wireless channel to the user
equipment further based on the range for each of the selected one
or more values.
10. The method of claim 1, further comprising: determining an
updated channel quality for the user equipment; and selecting one
or more updated values for the one or more parameters for providing
the QoS to the user equipment in the range of parameter values
based on the determined updated channel quality.
11. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the channel quality
comprises: determining a first channel quality for a first layer of
the wireless channel; and determining a second channel quality for
a second layer of the wireless channel, and wherein selecting one
or more values for the one or more parameters for providing the QoS
to the user equipment comprises: selecting one or more values for
the one or more parameters for providing the QoS to the user
equipment on the first layer in the range of parameter values based
on the determined first channel quality; and selecting one or more
values for the one or more parameters for providing the QoS to the
user equipment on the second layer in the range of parameter values
based on the determined second channel quality.
12. The method of claim 11, wherein the first layer comprises a
first wireless carrier, and wherein the second layer comprises a
second wireless carrier.
13. The method of claim 11, wherein the first layer comprises a
first spatial layer, and wherein the second layer comprises a
second spatial layer.
14. An apparatus, comprising: a memory; and a processor, the memory
and the processor being configured to: determine a channel quality
for a user equipment communicating on a wireless channel; and
select one or more values for one or more parameters for providing
quality of service (QoS) to the user equipment in a range of
parameter values based on the determined channel quality.
15. The apparatus of claim 14, the memory and the processor being
further configured to assign the user equipment to a class of a
plurality of classes, wherein each of the plurality of classes
corresponds to a different range of parameter values for providing
the QoS.
16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the range of parameter
values in which the one or more values for the one or more
parameters for providing the QoS to the user equipment are selected
corresponds to the assigned class.
17. The apparatus of claim 15, the memory and the processor being
further configured to provide, for each of the plurality of
classes, a range for each of the one or more values for the one or
more parameters for providing the QoS to the user equipment at each
channel quality.
18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the different range of
parameter values partially overlap for a first class of the
plurality of classes and a second class of the plurality of
classes.
19. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the one or more parameters
comprise one or more of packet delay budget, prioritized bit rate,
guaranteed bit rate, or packet error loss rate.
20. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the memory and the processor
being configured to determine the channel quality comprises the
memory and the processor being configured to receive a channel
quality metric from the user equipment.
21. The apparatus of claim 14, the memory and the processor being
further configured to allocate resources on the wireless channel to
the user equipment based on the selected one or more values for the
one or more parameters for providing the QoS to the user
equipment.
22. The apparatus of claim 21, the memory and the processor being
further configured to provide a range for each of the selected one
or more values for the one or more parameters for providing the QoS
to the user equipment at each channel quality, wherein the memory
and the processor being configured to allocate the resources
comprises the memory and the processor being configured to allocate
the resources on the wireless channel to the user equipment further
based on the range for each of the selected one or more values.
23. The apparatus of claim 14, the memory and the processor being
further configured to: determine an updated channel quality for the
user equipment; and select one or more updated values for the one
or more parameters for providing the QoS to the user equipment in
the range of parameter values based on the determined updated
channel quality.
24. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the memory and the processor
being configured to determine the channel quality comprises the
memory and the processor being configured to: determine a first
channel quality for a first layer of the wireless channel; and
determine a second channel quality for a second layer of the
wireless channel, and wherein the memory and the processor being
configured to select one or more values for the one or more
parameters for providing the QoS to the user equipment comprises
the memory and the processor being configured to: select one or
more values for the one or more parameters for providing the QoS to
the user equipment on the first layer in the range of parameter
values based on the determined first channel quality; and select
one or more values for the one or more parameters for providing the
QoS to the user equipment on the second layer in the range of
parameter values based on the determined second channel
quality.
25. The apparatus of claim 24, wherein the first layer comprises a
first wireless carrier, and wherein the second layer comprises a
second wireless carrier.
26. The apparatus of claim 24, wherein the first layer comprises a
first spatial layer, and wherein the second layer comprises a
second spatial layer.
27. A computer readable medium having instructions stored thereon
for performing a method for quality of service (QoS) configuration
for wireless communications, the method comprising: determining a
channel quality for a user equipment communicating on a wireless
channel; and selecting one or more values for one or more
parameters for providing QoS to the user equipment in a range of
parameter values based on the determined channel quality.
28. The computer readable medium of claim 27, wherein: the method
further comprises assigning the user equipment to a class of a
plurality of classes, wherein each of the plurality of classes
corresponds to a different range of parameter values for providing
the QoS; and the range of parameter values in which the one or more
values for the one or more parameters for providing the QoS to the
user equipment are selected corresponds to the assigned class.
29. An apparatus, comprising: means for determining a channel
quality for a user equipment communicating on a wireless channel;
and means for selecting one or more values for the one or more
parameters for providing quality of service (QoS) to the user
equipment in a range of parameter values based on the determined
channel quality.
30. The apparatus of claim 29, further comprising means for
assigning the user equipment to a class of a plurality of classes,
wherein each of the plurality of classes corresponds to a different
range of parameter values for providing the QoS, and wherein the
range of parameter values in which the one or more values for the
one or more parameters for providing the QoS to the user equipment
are selected corresponds to the assigned class.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional
Patent Application Ser. No. 62/436,862, filed Dec. 20, 2016. The
content of the provisional application is hereby incorporated by
reference in their entirety.
INTRODUCTION
[0002] The present disclosure relates generally to communication
systems, and more particularly, to methods and apparatus for
providing quality of service (QoS) configurations for wireless
communications.
[0003] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to
provide various telecommunication services such as telephony,
video, data, messaging, and broadcasts. Typical wireless
communication systems may employ multiple-access technologies
capable of supporting communication with multiple users by sharing
available system resources (e.g., bandwidth, transmit power).
Examples of such multiple-access technologies include Long Term
Evolution (LTE) systems, code division multiple access (CDMA)
systems, time division multiple access (TDMA) systems, frequency
division multiple access (FDMA) systems, orthogonal frequency
division multiple access (OFDMA) systems, single-carrier frequency
division multiple access (SC-FDMA) systems, and time division
synchronous code division multiple access (TD-SCDMA) systems.
[0004] In some examples, a wireless multiple-access communication
system may include a number of base stations, each simultaneously
supporting communication for multiple communication devices,
otherwise known as user equipment (UEs). In LTE or LTE-A network, a
set of one or more base stations may define an eNodeB (eNB). In
other examples (e.g., in a next generation or 5G network), a
wireless multiple access communication system may include a number
of distributed units (DUs) (e.g., edge units (EUs), edge nodes
(ENs), radio heads (RHs), smart radio heads (SRHs), transmission
reception points (TRPs), etc.) in communication with a number of
central units (CUs) (e.g., central nodes (CNs), access node
controllers (ANCs), etc.), where a set of one or more distributed
units, in communication with a central unit, may define an access
node (e.g., a new radio base station (NR BS), a new radio node-B
(NR NB), a network node, 5G NB, gNB, gNodeB, eNB, etc.). A base
station or DU may communicate with a set of UEs on downlink
channels (e.g., for transmissions from a base station or to a UE)
and uplink channels (e.g., for transmissions from a UE to a base
station or distributed unit).
[0005] These multiple access technologies have been adopted in
various telecommunication standards to provide a common protocol
that enables different wireless devices to communicate on a
municipal, national, regional, and even global level. An example of
an emerging telecommunication standard is new radio (NR), for
example, 5G radio access. NR is a set of enhancements to the LTE
mobile standard promulgated by Third Generation Partnership Project
(3GPP). It is designed to better support mobile broadband Internet
access by improving spectral efficiency, lowering costs, improving
services, making use of new spectrum, and better integrating with
other open standards using OFDMA with a cyclic prefix (CP) on the
downlink (DL) and on the uplink (UL) as well as support
beamforming, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna
technology, and carrier aggregation.
[0006] However, as the demand for mobile broadband access continues
to increase, there exists a need for further improvements in NR
technology. Preferably, these improvements should be applicable to
other multi-access technologies and the telecommunication standards
that employ these technologies.
BRIEF SUMMARY
[0007] The systems, methods, and devices of the disclosure each
have several aspects, no single one of which is solely responsible
for its desirable attributes. Without limiting the scope of this
disclosure as expressed by the claims which follow, some features
will now be discussed briefly. After considering this discussion,
and particularly after reading the section entitled "Detailed
Description" one will understand how the features of this
disclosure provide advantages that include improved communications
between access points and stations in a wireless network.
[0008] Certain aspects of the present disclosure provide a method
for quality of service (QoS) configuration for wireless
communications. The method includes determining a channel quality
for a user equipment communicating on a wireless channel. The
method further includes selecting one or more values for the one or
more parameters for providing QoS to the user equipment in a range
of parameter values based on the determined channel quality.
[0009] Certain aspects of the present disclosure provide an
apparatus. The apparatus includes a memory and a processor. The
memory and the processor are configured to determine a channel
quality for a user equipment communicating on a wireless channel.
The memory and the processor are further configured to select one
or more values for the one or more parameters for providing quality
of service (QoS) to the user equipment in a range of parameter
values based on the determined channel quality.
[0010] Certain aspects of the present disclosure provide an
apparatus. The apparatus includes means for determining a channel
quality for a user equipment communicating on a wireless channel.
The apparatus further includes means for selecting one or more
values for the one or more parameters for providing quality of
service (QoS) to the user equipment in a range of parameter values
based on the determined channel quality.
[0011] Certain aspects of the present disclosure provide a computer
readable medium having instructions stored thereon for performing a
method for quality of service (QoS) configuration for wireless
communications. An exemplary method generally includes determining
a channel quality for a user equipment communicating on a wireless
channel. The method further includes selecting one or more values
for the one or more parameters for providing QoS to the user
equipment in a range of parameter values based on the determined
channel quality.
[0012] To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, the
one or more aspects comprise the features hereinafter fully
described and particularly pointed out in the claims. The following
description and the annexed drawings set forth in detail certain
illustrative features of the one or more aspects. These features
are indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which
the principles of various aspects may be employed, and this
description is intended to include all such aspects and their
equivalents.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0013] So that the manner in which the above-recited features of
the present disclosure can be understood in detail, a more
particular description, briefly summarized above, may be had by
reference to aspects, some of which are illustrated in the appended
drawings. It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings
illustrate only certain typical aspects of this disclosure and are
therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope, for the
description may admit to other equally effective aspects.
[0014] FIG. 1 is a block diagram conceptually illustrating an
example telecommunications system, in accordance with certain
aspects of the present disclosure.
[0015] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example logical
architecture of a distributed RAN, in accordance with certain
aspects of the present disclosure.
[0016] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example physical
architecture of a distributed RAN, in accordance with certain
aspects of the present disclosure.
[0017] FIG. 4 is a block diagram conceptually illustrating a design
of an example BS and user equipment (UE), in accordance with
certain aspects of the present disclosure.
[0018] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing examples for implementing a
communication protocol stack, in accordance with certain aspects of
the present disclosure.
[0019] FIG. 6 illustrates an example of a DL-centric subframe, in
accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.
[0020] FIG. 7 illustrates an example of an UL-centric subframe, in
accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.
[0021] FIG. 8 illustrates an example bearer architecture in a 5G
network, in accordance with certain aspects of the present
disclosure.
[0022] FIG. 9 illustrates example operations for wireless
communications, for example, for providing quality of service (QoS)
configurations for wireless communications, in accordance with
certain aspects of the present disclosure.
[0023] FIG. 10 illustrates an example plot of QoS performance with
respect to channel quality for a tier-based QoS configuration, in
accordance with certain aspects of the present disclosure.
[0024] To facilitate understanding, identical reference numerals
have been used, where possible, to designate identical elements
that are common to the figures. It is contemplated that elements
disclosed in one aspect may be beneficially utilized on other
aspects without specific recitation.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0025] Aspects of the present disclosure provide apparatus,
methods, processing systems, and computer readable mediums for new
radio (NR) (new radio access technology or 5G technology).
[0026] NR may support various wireless communication services, such
as Enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) targeting wide bandwidth (e.g.
80 MHz beyond), millimeter wave (mmW) targeting high carrier
frequency (e.g. 60 GHz), massive MTC (mMTC) targeting non-backward
compatible MTC techniques, and/or mission critical targeting ultra
reliable low latency communications (URLLC). These services may
include latency and reliability requirements. These services may
also have different transmission time intervals (TTI) to meet
respective quality of service (QoS) requirements. In addition,
these services may co-exist in the same subframe.
[0027] Aspects of the present disclosure relate to providing a
level of QoS for wireless communications by a user equipment (UE)
based on channel quality of the UE. A scheduling entity (e.g., base
station) may determine a channel quality for the UE communicating
on a wireless channel. For example, in some aspects, the scheduling
entity may determine the channel quality based on a channel quality
metric received from the UE. The scheduling entity may select
values for parameter(s) (e.g., packet delay budget, prioritized bit
rate, guaranteed bit rate, packet error loss, etc.) for providing
QoS to the UE in a range of values for the parameter(s) based on
the determined channel quality. Certain aspects of the present
disclosure provide techniques for assigning the UE to a class of a
plurality of classes. Each class may correspond to a different
range of values for the one or more parameters for providing QoS.
In some aspects, the scheduling entity may select values for the
parameter(s) for providing the QoS to the UE in the range of
parameter values corresponding to the UE's assigned class.
[0028] The following description provides examples, and is not
limiting of the scope, applicability, or examples set forth in the
claims. Changes may be made in the function and arrangement of
elements discussed without departing from the scope of the
disclosure. Various examples may omit, substitute, or add various
procedures or components as appropriate. For instance, the methods
described may be performed in an order different from that
described, and various steps may be added, omitted, or combined.
Also, features described with respect to some examples may be
combined in some other examples. For example, an apparatus may be
implemented or a method may be practiced using any number of the
aspects set forth herein. In addition, the scope of the disclosure
is intended to cover such an apparatus or method which is practiced
using other structure, functionality, or structure and
functionality in addition to or other than the various aspects of
the disclosure set forth herein. It should be understood that any
aspect of the disclosure disclosed herein may be embodied by one or
more elements of a claim. The word "exemplary" is used herein to
mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration." Any aspect
described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed
as preferred or advantageous over other aspects.
[0029] The techniques described herein may be used for various
wireless communication networks such as LTE, CDMA, TDMA, FDMA,
OFDMA, SC-FDMA and other networks. The terms "network" and "system"
are often used interchangeably. A CDMA network may implement a
radio technology such as Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA),
cdma2000, etc. UTRA includes Wideband CDMA (WCDMA) and other
variants of CDMA. cdma2000 covers IS-2000, IS-95 and IS-856
standards. A TDMA network may implement a radio technology such as
Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM). An OFDMA network may
implement a radio technology such as NR (e.g. 5G RA), Evolved UTRA
(E-UTRA), Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE
802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Flash-OFDMA, etc. UTRA and E-UTRA are
part of Universal Mobile Telecommunication System (UMTS). NR is an
emerging wireless communications technology under development in
conjunction with the 5G Technology Forum (5GTF). 3GPP Long Term
Evolution (LTE) and LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) are releases of UMTS that
use E-UTRA. UTRA, E-UTRA, UMTS, LTE, LTE-A and GSM are described in
documents from an organization named "3rd Generation Partnership
Project" (3GPP). cdma2000 and UMB are described in documents from
an organization named "3rd Generation Partnership Project 2"
(3GPP2). The techniques described herein may be used for the
wireless networks and radio technologies mentioned above as well as
other wireless networks and radio technologies. For clarity, while
aspects may be described herein using terminology commonly
associated with 3G and/or 4G wireless technologies, aspects of the
present disclosure can be applied in other generation-based
communication systems, such as 5G and later, including NR
technologies.
Example Wireless Communications System
[0030] FIG. 1 illustrates an example wireless network 100, such as
a new radio (NR) or 5G network, in which aspects of the present
disclosure may be performed.
[0031] As illustrated in FIG. 1, the wireless network 100 may
include a number of BSs 110 and other network entities. A BS may be
a station that communicates with UEs. Each BS 110 may provide
communication coverage for a particular geographic area. In 3GPP,
the term "cell" can refer to a coverage area of a Node B and/or a
Node B subsystem serving this coverage area, depending on the
context in which the term is used. In NR systems, the term "cell"
and eNB, gNB, gNodeB, Node B, 5G NB, AP, NR BS, NR BS, or TRP may
be interchangeable. In some examples, a cell may not necessarily be
stationary, and the geographic area of the cell may move according
to the location of a mobile base station. In some examples, the
base stations may be interconnected to one another and/or to one or
more other base stations or network nodes (not shown) in the
wireless network 100 through various types of backhaul interfaces
such as a direct physical connection, a virtual network, or the
like using any suitable transport network.
[0032] In general, any number of wireless networks may be deployed
in a given geographic area. Each wireless network may support a
particular radio access technology (RAT) and may operate on one or
more frequencies. A RAT may also be referred to as a radio
technology, an air interface, etc. A frequency may also be referred
to as a carrier, a frequency channel, etc. Each frequency may
support a single RAT in a given geographic area in order to avoid
interference between wireless networks of different RATs. In some
cases, NR or 5G RAT networks may be deployed.
[0033] A BS may provide communication coverage for a macro cell, a
pico cell, a femto cell, and/or other types of cell. A macro cell
may cover a relatively large geographic area (e.g., several
kilometers in radius) and may allow unrestricted access by UEs with
service subscription. A pico cell may cover a relatively small
geographic area and may allow unrestricted access by UEs with
service subscription. A femto cell may cover a relatively small
geographic area (e.g., a home) and may allow restricted access by
UEs having association with the femto cell (e.g., UEs in a Closed
Subscriber Group (CSG), UEs for users in the home, etc.). A BS for
a macro cell may be referred to as a macro BS. A BS for a pico cell
may be referred to as a pico BS. A BS for a femto cell may be
referred to as a femto BS or a home BS. In the example shown in
FIG. 1, the BSs 110a, 110b and 110c may be macro BSs for the macro
cells 102a, 102b and 102c, respectively. The BS 110x may be a pico
BS for a pico cell 102x. The BSs 110y and 110z may be femto BS for
the femto cells 102y and 102z, respectively. A BS may support one
or multiple (e.g., three) cells.
[0034] The wireless network 100 may also include relay stations. A
relay station is a station that receives a transmission of data
and/or other information from an upstream station (e.g., a BS or a
UE) and sends a transmission of the data and/or other information
to a downstream station (e.g., a UE or a BS). A relay station may
also be a UE that relays transmissions for other UEs. In the
example shown in FIG. 1, a relay station 110r may communicate with
the BS 110a and a UE 120r in order to facilitate communication
between the BS 110a and the UE 120r. A relay station may also be
referred to as a relay BS, a relay, etc.
[0035] The wireless network 100 may be a heterogeneous network that
includes BSs of different types, e.g., macro BS, pico BS, femto BS,
relays, etc. These different types of BSs may have different
transmit power levels, different coverage areas, and different
impact on interference in the wireless network 100. For example,
macro BS may have a high transmit power level (e.g., 20 Watts)
whereas pico BS, femto BS, and relays may have a lower transmit
power level (e.g., 1 Watt).
[0036] The wireless network 100 may support synchronous or
asynchronous operation. For synchronous operation, the BSs may have
similar frame timing, and transmissions from different BSs may be
approximately aligned in time. For asynchronous operation, the BSs
may have different frame timing, and transmissions from different
BSs may not be aligned in time. The techniques described herein may
be used for both synchronous and asynchronous operation.
[0037] A network controller 130 may be coupled to a set of BSs and
provide coordination and control for these BSs. The network
controller 130 may communicate with the BSs 110 via a backhaul. The
BSs 110 may also communicate with one another, e.g., directly or
indirectly via wireless or wireline backhaul.
[0038] The UEs 120 (e.g., 120x, 120y, etc.) may be dispersed
throughout the wireless network 100, and each UE may be stationary
or mobile. A UE may also be referred to as a mobile station, a
terminal, an access terminal, a subscriber unit, a station, a
Customer Premises Equipment (CPE), a cellular phone, a smart phone,
a personal digital assistant (PDA), a wireless modem, a wireless
communication device, a handheld device, a laptop computer, a
cordless phone, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, a tablet, a
camera, a gaming device, a netbook, a smartbook, an ultrabook, a
medical device or medical equipment, a biometric sensor/device, a
wearable device such as a smart watch, smart clothing, smart
glasses, a smart wrist band, smart jewelry (e.g., a smart ring, a
smart bracelet, etc.), an entertainment device (e.g., a music
device, a video device, a satellite radio, etc.), a vehicular
component or sensor, a smart meter/sensor, industrial manufacturing
equipment, a global positioning system device, or any other
suitable device that is configured to communicate via a wireless or
wired medium. Some UEs may be considered evolved or machine-type
communication (MTC) devices or evolved MTC (eMTC) devices. MTC and
eMTC UEs include, for example, robots, drones, remote devices,
sensors, meters, monitors, location tags, etc., that may
communicate with a BS, another device (e.g., remote device), or
some other entity. A wireless node may provide, for example,
connectivity for or to a network (e.g., a wide area network such as
Internet or a cellular network) via a wired or wireless
communication link. Some UEs may be considered Internet-of-Things
(IoT) devices.
[0039] In FIG. 1, a solid line with double arrows indicates desired
transmissions between a UE and a serving BS, which is a BS
designated to serve the UE on the downlink and/or uplink. A dashed
line with double arrows indicates interfering transmissions between
a UE and a BS.
[0040] In certain aspects, as shown, a BS 110 may be configured to
determine a channel quality of UE 120 and select parameter value(s)
for providing QoS to the UE based on the determined channel
quality, according to certain aspects discussed herein. In some
aspects, as shown, the BS 110 may use QoS component 140 to
determine the channel quality of the UE and select the parameter
value(s). Note that while QoS component 140 is shown separate from
BS 110, in some aspects, QoS component 140 may be within BS
110.
[0041] Certain wireless networks (e.g., LTE) utilize orthogonal
frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) on the downlink and
single-carrier frequency division multiplexing (SC-FDM) on the
uplink. OFDM and SC-FDM partition the system bandwidth into
multiple (K) orthogonal subcarriers, which are also commonly
referred to as tones, bins, etc. Each subcarrier may be modulated
with data. In general, modulation symbols are sent in the frequency
domain with OFDM and in the time domain with SC-FDM. The spacing
between adjacent subcarriers may be fixed, and the total number of
subcarriers (K) may be dependent on the system bandwidth. For
example, the spacing of the subcarriers may be 15 kHz and the
minimum resource allocation (called a `resource block`) may be 12
subcarriers (or 180 kHz). Consequently, the nominal FFT size may be
equal to 128, 256, 512, 1024 or 2048 for system bandwidth of 1.25,
2.5, 5, 10 or 20 megahertz (MHz), respectively. The system
bandwidth may also be partitioned into subbands. For example, a
subband may cover 1.08 MHz (i.e., 6 resource blocks), and there may
be 1, 2, 4, 8 or 16 subbands for system bandwidth of 1.25, 2.5, 5,
10 or 20 MHz, respectively.
[0042] While aspects of the examples described herein may be
associated with LTE technologies, aspects of the present disclosure
may be applicable with other wireless communications systems, such
as NR. NR may utilize OFDM with a CP on the uplink and downlink and
include support for half-duplex operation using time division
duplex (TDD). A single component carrier bandwidth of 100 MHz may
be supported. NR resource blocks may span 12 sub-carriers with a
sub-carrier bandwidth of 75 kHz over a 0.1 ms duration. Each radio
frame may consist of 50 subframes with a length of 10 ms.
Consequently, each subframe may have a length of 0.2 ms. Each
subframe may indicate a link direction (i.e., DL or UL) for data
transmission and the link direction for each subframe may be
dynamically switched. Each subframe may include DL/UL data as well
as DL/UL control data. UL and DL subframes for NR may be as
described in more detail below with respect to FIGS. 6 and 7.
Beamforming may be supported and beam direction may be dynamically
configured. MIMO transmissions with precoding may also be
supported. MIMO configurations in the DL may support up to 8
transmit antennas with multi-layer DL transmissions up to 8 streams
and up to 2 streams per UE. Multi-layer transmissions with up to 2
streams per UE may be supported. Aggregation of multiple cells may
be supported with up to 8 serving cells. Alternatively, NR may
support a different air interface, other than an OFDM-based. NR
networks may include entities such CUs and/or DUs.
[0043] In some examples, access to the air interface may be
scheduled, wherein a scheduling entity (e.g., a base station)
allocates resources for communication among some or all devices and
equipment within its service area or cell. Within the present
disclosure, as discussed further below, the scheduling entity may
be responsible for scheduling, assigning, reconfiguring, and
releasing resources for one or more subordinate entities. That is,
for scheduled communication, subordinate entities utilize resources
allocated by the scheduling entity. Base stations are not the only
entities that may function as a scheduling entity. That is, in some
examples, a UE may function as a scheduling entity, scheduling
resources for one or more subordinate entities (e.g., one or more
other UEs). In this example, the UE is functioning as a scheduling
entity, and other UEs utilize resources scheduled by the UE for
wireless communication. A UE may function as a scheduling entity in
a peer-to-peer (P2P) network, and/or in a mesh network. In a mesh
network example, UEs may optionally communicate directly with one
another in addition to communicating with the scheduling
entity.
[0044] Thus, in a wireless communication network with a scheduled
access to time-frequency resources and having a cellular
configuration, a P2P configuration, and a mesh configuration, a
scheduling entity and one or more subordinate entities may
communicate utilizing the scheduled resources.
[0045] As noted above, a RAN may include a CU and DUs. A NR BS
(e.g., eNB, 5G Node B, Node B, transmission reception point (TRP),
access point (AP)) may correspond to one or multiple BSs. NR cells
can be configured as access cell (ACells) or data only cells
(DCells). For example, the RAN (e.g., a central unit or distributed
unit) can configure the cells. DCells may be cells used for carrier
aggregation or dual connectivity, but not used for initial access,
cell selection/reselection, or handover. In some cases DCells may
not transmit synchronization signals--in some case cases DCells may
transmit SS. NR BSs may transmit downlink signals to UEs indicating
the cell type. Based on the cell type indication, the UE may
communicate with the NR BS. For example, the UE may determine NR
BSs to consider for cell selection, access, handover, and/or
measurement based on the indicated cell type.
[0046] FIG. 2 illustrates an example logical architecture of a
distributed radio access network (RAN) 200, which may be
implemented in the wireless communication system illustrated in
FIG. 1. A 5G access node 206 may include an access node controller
(ANC) 202. The ANC may be a central unit (CU) of the distributed
RAN 200. The backhaul interface to the next generation core network
(NG-CN) 204 may terminate at the ANC. The backhaul interface to
neighboring next generation access nodes (NG-ANs) may terminate at
the ANC. The ANC may include one or more TRPs 208 (which may also
be referred to as BSs, NR BSs, Node Bs, 5G NBs, APs, or some other
term). As described above, a TRP may be used interchangeably with
"cell."
[0047] The TRPs 208 may be a DU. The TRPs may be connected to one
ANC (ANC 202) or more than one ANC (not illustrated). For example,
for RAN sharing, radio as a service (RaaS), and service specific
AND deployments, the TRP may be connected to more than one ANC. A
TRP may include one or more antenna ports. The TRPs may be
configured to individually (e.g., dynamic selection) or jointly
(e.g., joint transmission) serve traffic to a UE.
[0048] The local architecture 200 may be used to illustrate
fronthaul definition. The architecture may be defined that support
fronthauling solutions across different deployment types. For
example, the architecture may be based on transmit network
capabilities (e.g., bandwidth, latency, and/or jitter).
[0049] The architecture may share features and/or components with
LTE. According to aspects, the next generation AN (NG-AN) 210 may
support dual connectivity with NR. The NG-AN may share a common
fronthaul for LTE and NR.
[0050] The architecture may enable cooperation between and among
TRPs 208. For example, cooperation may be preset within a TRP
and/or across TRPs via the ANC 202. According to aspects, no
inter-TRP interface may be needed/present.
[0051] According to aspects, a dynamic configuration of split
logical functions may be present within the architecture 200. As
will be described in more detail with reference to FIG. 5, the
Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer, Packet Data Convergence
Protocol (PDCP) layer, Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, Medium
Access Control (MAC) layer, and a Physical (PHY) layers may be
adaptably placed at the DU or CU (e.g., TRP or ANC, respectively).
According to certain aspects, a BS may include a central unit (CU)
(e.g., ANC 202) and/or one or more distributed units (e.g., one or
more TRPs 208).
[0052] FIG. 3 illustrates an example physical architecture of a
distributed RAN 300, according to aspects of the present
disclosure. A centralized core network unit (C-CU) 302 may host
core network functions. The C-CU may be centrally deployed. C-CU
functionality may be offloaded (e.g., to advanced wireless services
(AWS)), in an effort to handle peak capacity.
[0053] A centralized RAN unit (C-RU) 304 may host one or more ANC
functions. Optionally, the C-RU may host core network functions
locally. The C-RU may have distributed deployment. The C-RU may be
closer to the network edge.
[0054] A DU 306 may host one or more TRPs (edge node (EN), an edge
unit (EU), a radio head (RH), a smart radio head (SRH), or the
like). The DU may be located at edges of the network with radio
frequency (RF) functionality.
[0055] FIG. 4 illustrates example components of the BS 110 and UE
120 illustrated in FIG. 1, which may be used to implement aspects
of the present disclosure. As described above, the BS may include a
TRP. One or more components of the BS 110 and UE 120 may be used to
practice aspects of the present disclosure. For example, antennas
452, Tx/Rx 222, processors 466, 458, 464, and/or
controller/processor 480 of the UE 120 and/or antennas 434,
processors 460, 420, 438, and/or controller/processor 440 of the BS
110 may be used to perform the operations described herein and
illustrated with reference to FIG. 9.
[0056] FIG. 4 shows a block diagram of a design of a BS 110 and a
UE 120, which may be one of the BSs and one of the UEs in FIG. 1.
For a restricted association scenario, the base station 110 may be
the macro BS 110c in FIG. 1, and the UE 120 may be the UE 120y. The
base station 110 may also be a base station of some other type. The
base station 110 may be equipped with antennas 434a through 434t,
and the UE 120 may be equipped with antennas 452a through 452r.
[0057] At the base station 110, a transmit processor 420 may
receive data from a data source 412 and control information from a
controller/processor 440. The control information may be for the
Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH), Physical Control Format
Indicator Channel (PCFICH), Physical Hybrid ARQ Indicator Channel
(PHICH), Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH), etc. The data
may be for the Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH), etc. The
processor 420 may process (e.g., encode and symbol map) the data
and control information to obtain data symbols and control symbols,
respectively. The processor 420 may also generate reference
symbols, e.g., for the PSS, SSS, and cell-specific reference
signal. A transmit (TX) multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO)
processor 430 may perform spatial processing (e.g., precoding) on
the data symbols, the control symbols, and/or the reference
symbols, if applicable, and may provide output symbol streams to
the modulators (MODs) 432a through 432t. Each modulator 432 may
process a respective output symbol stream (e.g., for OFDM, etc.) to
obtain an output sample stream. Each modulator 432 may further
process (e.g., convert to analog, amplify, filter, and upconvert)
the output sample stream to obtain a downlink signal. Downlink
signals from modulators 432a through 432t may be transmitted via
the antennas 434a through 434t, respectively.
[0058] At the UE 120, the antennas 452a through 452r may receive
the downlink signals from the base station 110 and may provide
received signals to the demodulators (DEMODs) 454a through 454r,
respectively. Each demodulator 454 may condition (e.g., filter,
amplify, downconvert, and digitize) a respective received signal to
obtain input samples. Each demodulator 454 may further process the
input samples (e.g., for OFDM, etc.) to obtain received symbols. A
MIMO detector 456 may obtain received symbols from all the
demodulators 454a through 454r, perform MIMO detection on the
received symbols if applicable, and provide detected symbols. A
receive processor 458 may process (e.g., demodulate, deinterleave,
and decode) the detected symbols, provide decoded data for the UE
120 to a data sink 460, and provide decoded control information to
a controller/processor 480.
[0059] On the uplink, at the UE 120, a transmit processor 464 may
receive and process data (e.g., for the Physical Uplink Shared
Channel (PUSCH)) from a data source 462 and control information
(e.g., for the Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) from the
controller/processor 480. The transmit processor 464 may also
generate reference symbols for a reference signal. The symbols from
the transmit processor 464 may be precoded by a TX MIMO processor
466 if applicable, further processed by the demodulators 454a
through 454r (e.g., for SC-FDM, etc.), and transmitted to the base
station 110. At the BS 110, the uplink signals from the UE 120 may
be received by the antennas 434, processed by the modulators 432,
detected by a MIMO detector 436 if applicable, and further
processed by a receive processor 438 to obtain decoded data and
control information sent by the UE 120. The receive processor 438
may provide the decoded data to a data sink 439 and the decoded
control information to the controller/processor 440.
[0060] The controllers/processors 440 and 480 may direct the
operation at the base station 110 and the UE 120, respectively. The
processor 440 and/or other processors and modules at the base
station 110 may perform or direct, e.g., the execution of the
functional blocks illustrated in FIG. 9, and/or other processes for
the techniques described herein. In some aspects, the
controller/processor 440 (and/or other modules at the base station
110) may use QoS component 140 to determine a channel quality of
the UE and select parameter value(s) for providing QoS to the UE,
according to the techniques discussed herein. The processor 480
and/or other processors and modules at the UE 120 may also perform
or direct processes for the techniques described herein. The
memories 442 and 482 may store data and program codes for the BS
110 and the UE 120, respectively. A scheduler 444 may schedule UEs
for data transmission on the downlink and/or uplink.
[0061] FIG. 5 illustrates a diagram 500 showing examples for
implementing a communications protocol stack, according to aspects
of the present disclosure. The illustrated communications protocol
stacks may be implemented by devices operating in a in a 5G system
(e.g., a system that supports uplink-based mobility). Diagram 500
illustrates a communications protocol stack including a Radio
Resource Control (RRC) layer 510, a Packet Data Convergence
Protocol (PDCP) layer 515, a Radio Link Control (RLC) layer 520, a
Medium Access Control (MAC) layer 525, and a Physical (PHY) layer
530. In various examples the layers of a protocol stack may be
implemented as separate modules of software, portions of a
processor or ASIC, portions of non-collocated devices connected by
a communications link, or various combinations thereof. Collocated
and non-collocated implementations may be used, for example, in a
protocol stack for a network access device (e.g., ANs, CUs, and/or
DUs) or a UE.
[0062] A first option 505-a shows a split implementation of a
protocol stack, in which implementation of the protocol stack is
split between a centralized network access device (e.g., an ANC 202
in FIG. 2) and distributed network access device (e.g., DU 208 in
FIG. 2). In the first option 505-a, an RRC layer 510 and a PDCP
layer 515 may be implemented by the central unit, and an RLC layer
520, a MAC layer 525, and a PHY layer 530 may be implemented by the
DU. In various examples the CU and the DU may be collocated or
non-collocated. The first option 505-a may be useful in a macro
cell, micro cell, or pico cell deployment.
[0063] A second option 505-b shows a unified implementation of a
protocol stack, in which the protocol stack is implemented in a
single network access device (e.g., access node (AN), new radio
base station (NR BS), a new radio Node-B (NR NB), a network node
(NN), or the like.). In the second option, the RRC layer 510, the
PDCP layer 515, the RLC layer 520, the MAC layer 525, and the PHY
layer 530 may each be implemented by the AN. The second option
505-b may be useful in a femto cell deployment.
[0064] Regardless of whether a network access device implements
part or all of a protocol stack, a UE may implement an entire
protocol stack (e.g., the RRC layer 510, the PDCP layer 515, the
RLC layer 520, the MAC layer 525, and the PHY layer 530).
[0065] FIG. 6 is a diagram 600 showing an example of a DL-centric
subframe. The DL-centric subframe may include a control portion
602. The control portion 602 may exist in the initial or beginning
portion of the DL-centric subframe. The control portion 602 may
include various scheduling information and/or control information
corresponding to various portions of the DL-centric subframe. In
some configurations, the control portion 602 may be a physical DL
control channel (PDCCH), as indicated in FIG. 6. The DL-centric
subframe may also include a DL data portion 604. The DL data
portion 604 may sometimes be referred to as the payload of the
DL-centric subframe. The DL data portion 604 may include the
communication resources utilized to communicate DL data from the
scheduling entity (e.g., UE or BS) to the subordinate entity (e.g.,
UE). In some configurations, the DL data portion 604 may be a
physical DL shared channel (PDSCH).
[0066] The DL-centric subframe may also include a common UL portion
606. The common UL portion 606 may sometimes be referred to as an
UL burst, a common UL burst, and/or various other suitable terms.
The common UL portion 606 may include feedback information
corresponding to various other portions of the DL-centric subframe.
For example, the common UL portion 606 may include feedback
information corresponding to the control portion 602. Non-limiting
examples of feedback information may include an ACK signal, a NACK
signal, a HARQ indicator, and/or various other suitable types of
information. The common UL portion 606 may include additional or
alternative information, such as information pertaining to random
access channel (RACH) procedures, scheduling requests (SRs), and
various other suitable types of information. As illustrated in FIG.
6, the end of the DL data portion 604 may be separated in time from
the beginning of the common UL portion 606. This time separation
may sometimes be referred to as a gap, a guard period, a guard
interval, and/or various other suitable terms. This separation
provides time for the switch-over from DL communication (e.g.,
reception operation by the subordinate entity (e.g., UE)) to UL
communication (e.g., transmission by the subordinate entity (e.g.,
UE)). One of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the
foregoing is merely one example of a DL-centric subframe and
alternative structures having similar features may exist without
necessarily deviating from the aspects described herein.
[0067] FIG. 7 is a diagram 700 showing an example of an UL-centric
subframe. The UL-centric subframe may include a control portion
702. The control portion 702 may exist in the initial or beginning
portion of the UL-centric subframe. The control portion 702 in FIG.
7 may be similar to the control portion described above with
reference to FIG. 6. The UL-centric subframe may also include an UL
data portion 704. The UL data portion 704 may sometimes be referred
to as the payload of the UL-centric subframe. The UL portion may
refer to the communication resources utilized to communicate UL
data from the subordinate entity (e.g., UE) to the scheduling
entity (e.g., UE or BS). In some configurations, the control
portion 702 may be a physical DL control channel (PDCCH).
[0068] As illustrated in FIG. 7, the end of the control portion 702
may be separated in time from the beginning of the UL data portion
704. This time separation may sometimes be referred to as a gap,
guard period, guard interval, and/or various other suitable terms.
This separation provides time for the switch-over from DL
communication (e.g., reception operation by the scheduling entity)
to UL communication (e.g., transmission by the scheduling entity).
The UL-centric subframe may also include a common UL portion 706.
The common UL portion 706 in FIG. 7 may be similar to the common UL
portion 606 described above with reference to FIG. 6. The common UL
portion 706 may additional or alternative include information
pertaining to channel quality indicator (CQI), sounding reference
signals (SRSs), and various other suitable types of information.
One of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the foregoing
is merely one example of an UL-centric subframe and alternative
structures having similar features may exist without necessarily
deviating from the aspects described herein.
[0069] In some circumstances, two or more subordinate entities
(e.g., UEs) may communicate with each other using sidelink signals.
Real-world applications of such sidelink communications may include
public safety, proximity services, UE-to-network relaying,
vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communications, Internet of Everything
(IoE) communications, IoT communications, mission-critical mesh,
and/or various other suitable applications. Generally, a sidelink
signal may refer to a signal communicated from one subordinate
entity (e.g., UE1) to another subordinate entity (e.g., UE2)
without relaying that communication through the scheduling entity
(e.g., UE or BS), even though the scheduling entity may be utilized
for scheduling and/or control purposes. In some examples, the
sidelink signals may be communicated using a licensed spectrum
(unlike wireless local area networks, which typically use an
unlicensed spectrum).
[0070] A UE may operate in various radio resource configurations,
including a configuration associated with transmitting pilots using
a dedicated set of resources (e.g., a radio resource control (RRC)
dedicated state, etc.) or a configuration associated with
transmitting pilots using a common set of resources (e.g., an RRC
common state, etc.). When operating in the RRC dedicated state, the
UE may select a dedicated set of resources for transmitting a pilot
signal to a network. When operating in the RRC common state, the UE
may select a common set of resources for transmitting a pilot
signal to the network. In either case, a pilot signal transmitted
by the UE may be received by one or more network access devices,
such as an AN, or a DU, or portions thereof. Each receiving network
access device may be configured to receive and measure pilot
signals transmitted on the common set of resources, and also
receive and measure pilot signals transmitted on dedicated sets of
resources allocated to the UEs for which the network access device
is a member of a monitoring set of network access devices for the
UE. One or more of the receiving network access devices, or a CU to
which receiving network access device(s) transmit the measurements
of the pilot signals, may use the measurements to identify serving
cells for the UEs, or to initiate a change of serving cell for one
or more of the UEs.
[0071] FIG. 8 illustrates an example bearer architecture 800 for a
communication network, such as 5G or NR, according to aspects of
the present disclosure. As shown, in 5G, there may be a single
bearer 802 between the eNB and the Packet Data Network (PDN)
Gateway (P-GW) for each PDN. The radio bearers (e.g., dedicated
radio bearer, default radio bearer) in the RAN (e.g., between the
UE and eNB) may follow the current architecture design (e.g., in
LTE). In some aspects, however, these radio bearers in the RAN may
be carried in the bearer 802 as long as the bearers belong to the
same PDN.
Example QOS Configuration for Wireless Communications in 5G
[0072] Current techniques for providing QoS for UE traffic
typically do not account for channel quality of the UE in the
network. Such techniques, therefore, may not be ideal for 5G
networks, as these techniques can lead to inefficient allocation of
resources and reduced performance in wireless communication
networks.
[0073] In current techniques, for example, a UE with a higher QoS
will generally be provided with additional and higher quality
service, such as more resource block allocations and/or more
scheduling opportunities. However, when such a high priority UE
suffers from bad channel quality, the UE may not be able to receive
the higher quality service due in part to multiple hybrid automatic
repeat request (HARQ) retransmissions. Thus, under poor channel
conditions, providing high QoS to a UE, alone, may not be effective
for improving user experience.
[0074] Additionally, in some cases, allocating a large amount of
communication resources to such a UE with poor channel conditions
and higher QoS can lead to less resource allocation for other UEs
that may possibly have better channel conditions. This can reduce
the overall system-level throughput and capacity.
[0075] Further, for a given UE, the channel quality on different
layers (e.g., carrier(s) or antenna(s)) may be significantly
different. Thus, in these cases, the UE may want to put higher
priority data, such as voice over LTE (VoLTE), on the layer with
the better channel quality, as such data is generally more
important and may have to be served faster and more reliably (e.g.,
compared to lower priority data, such as chat, email, etc.).
[0076] Accordingly, to allow for better allocation of resources
and/or increased performance in a network, it may be desirable to
allow the wireless communication system to take channel quality
into consideration when configuring QoS and providing service to a
UE.
[0077] FIG. 9 illustrates example operations 900 for wireless
communications, for example, for providing QoS configurations for
wireless communications based on channel quality. According to
certain aspects, operations 900 may be performed by a scheduling
entity (e.g., such as an eNB 110) and/or core network entity (e.g.,
P-GW).
[0078] Operations 900 begin at 902 where the scheduling entity
determines a channel quality for a UE communicating on a wireless
channel. At 904, the scheduling entity selects one or more values
for one or more parameters (e.g., packet delay budget, prioritized
bit rate, guaranteed bit rate, packet error loss, etc.) for
providing QoS to the UE in a range of parameter values based on the
determined channel quality. In one aspect, the scheduling entity
may allocate resources on the wireless channel to the UE based on
the one or more selected values for the one or more parameters for
providing the QoS to the UE.
[0079] In some aspects, the range of parameter values in which the
scheduling entity selects the parameter value(s) for providing QoS
to the UE may be based in part on a class of service assigned to
the UE. As described below, for example, the scheduling entity may
assign a user to a class of a plurality of classes. Each class may
be associated with a particular level or range of QoS performance.
That is, each class may correspond to a different range of values
for one or more parameters for providing QoS. The scheduling entity
may select the parameter value(s) for providing QoS to the UE in
the range of parameter values that corresponds to the UE's assigned
class. As further described below, in some aspects, the scheduling
entity may further provide a range for each of the selected
parameter value(s) (e.g., within the range of parameter values
corresponding to the UE's assigned class) for providing QoS to the
UE at each channel quality.
[0080] In general, since the core network (e.g., P-GW) may not have
information about the real-time channel quality of the UE, aspects
presented herein provide a multi-tier QoS configuration scheme. The
overall QoS configuration may be operated by the core network
and/or eNB. Though certain aspects are described as part of a
multi-tier scheme, certain aspects/tiers may be
practiced/implemented independently as well. For example, some
aspects may relate to only the first and second tier, some aspects
may relate to only the first and third tier, etc.
[0081] In one aspect, a first tier of the multi-tier QoS
configuration scheme may be used to provide coarse QoS
configurations for UEs. For example, the core network (e.g., P-GW)
may configure coarse bearer-level QoS parameters, such as QoS class
identifier (QCI), according to the user class and traffic type.
Multiple user classes may be defined, where each user class is
associated with a particular level of service.
[0082] For example, in one aspect, a first user class (e.g.,
referred to herein as Class A user class), a second user class
(e.g., referred to herein as Class B user class), and a third user
class (e.g., referred to herein as Class C user class) may be
defined. The Class A user class may be associated with a higher
level of service compared to the Class B and Class C user classes,
and the Class B user class may be associated with a higher level of
service compared to the Class C user class. For example, the
TCP-based traffic from Class A users may be assigned QCI=6 bearer,
while the TCP-based traffic from Class B users may be assigned
QCI=7 bearer.
[0083] Note, however, that the above user classes are merely
provided as reference examples of the different types of user
classes that may be configured in a multi-tier QoS configuration.
Those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that a greater or
fewer number of user classes may be defined for a coarse QoS
configuration tier.
[0084] In certain wireless networks (e.g., LTE), each QCI generally
indicates a performance value for one or more QoS parameters, such
as priority, packet delay budget, packet error loss rate (PER),
guaranteed bit rate (GBR)/non-GBR classification, scheduling
weight, etc., associated with the traffic type. For example, in
current designs, QCI=6 maps to a packet delay budget of 300 ms, a
PER of 10.sup.-6, weight of 36, prioritized bit rate (PBR) of 16
kilobits per second (kbps), and priority of 11.
[0085] According to certain aspects, as opposed to using current
definitions and settings for QCI values, techniques presented
herein allow the core network (e.g., in 5G networks) to assign a
QCI that is associated with a range of parameter values for QoS
parameter(s), rather than a specific value for the QoS
parameter(s). Referring to QCI=6 as a reference example, as opposed
to mapping specific values for the QoS parameters described above
for QCI=6, QCI=6 (e.g., in 5G) may map to a packet delay budget in
the range of 200 ms-400 ms, a PER in the range of
10.sup.-5-10.sup.-6, a weight in the range of 18-36, a PBR in the
range of 8 kbps-64 kbps, and a priority in the range of 10-12. In
one aspect, such coarse QoS configuration (e.g., with a range of
values for QoS parameters for each user class) could be achieved
through a new definition of QCI.
[0086] On the other hand, in some aspects, the coarse QoS
configuration described herein could be achieved by leaving current
QCI definitions unchanged and by defining a new QCI value that is
associated with a range of values for QoS parameters. In one case,
for example, a QCI=106 that has the range of values associated with
the QoS parameters above (e.g., for QCI=6) could be defined. In
some aspects, the range of values associated with QoS parameters
for different classes may be defined in some other manner.
[0087] In one aspect, the different range of values may partially
overlap for one or more classes of the plurality of classes. For
example, the range of parameter values associated with the Class A
user class may partially overlap with the range of parameter values
associated with the Class B user class (e.g., as shown in FIG. 10)
and/or the range of parameter values associated with the Class C
user class. Similarly, the range of parameter values associated
with the Class B user class may partially overlap with the range of
parameter values associated with the Class C user class (e.g., as
also shown in FIG. 10).
[0088] Once the first tier of the multi-tier QoS configuration is
completed, a second tier of the multi-tier QoS configuration may
allow for refining the coarse QoS configuration for a UE. That is,
in some aspects, once the core network has configured bearer-level
QCI and QCI related parameter ranges, the eNB may configure the
communication resources by dynamically adjusting the QCI related
parameters based on the real-time channel quality for the UE
communicating on the channel and the overall system-level
performance.
[0089] For example, for a 5G QCI=6 UE (e.g., which may indicate a
Class A user), when the eNB determines that the UE channel quality
is below a predefined threshold, the eNB may configure the lowest
QoS for the UE. When the eNB determines that the UE channel quality
is above a predefined threshold, the eNB may dynamically select QCI
related parameters within the range configured by the core network
based on the channel quality. In some aspects, there is no
threshold and the QCI related parameters are always determined
dynamically. In some aspects, different QCI related parameters are
mapped to different channel quality measurements based on a table
of values with corresponding ranges of channel quality to
corresponding parameter values, functions with an input of channel
quality and outputs of parameter values, etc. In some aspects, the
scheduling entity (as shown in FIG. 10) may provide, for each class
of the UE, a range for each of the parameter value(s) for providing
QoS to the UE at each channel quality (e.g., CQI). Each range of
parameter value(s) (e.g., in the second tier) may be within the
range of parameter values associated with the coarse QoS
configuration (e.g., in the first tier). The scheduling entity may
allocate the resources on the wireless channel to the UE further
based on the range for each of the selected parameter value(s).
[0090] In some aspects, the eNB may determine the channel quality
for the UE communicating on the wireless channel based on receipt
of a channel quality metric from the UE. Such channel quality
metric, for example, may include the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR),
signal-to-interference plus noise ratio (SINR), received signal
strength indicator (RSSI), etc. In some aspects, the eNB may
determine an updated channel quality for the UE (e.g., based on
channel quality metrics received from the UE) and select updated
value(s) for the one or more parameters for providing QoS to the UE
in the range of parameter values based on the determined updated
channel quality. In some aspects, the range of parameter values in
which in the updated parameter value(s) are selected may correspond
to the UE's assigned class.
[0091] FIG. 10 illustrates an example of how such a refined QoS
configuration may affect the QoS performance for a UE with respect
to channel quality of the UE, according to certain aspects
presented herein. As shown, within each class, there may be an
associated range for each of the parameter value(s) (e.g., within
the coarse QoS configuration) at each channel quality. By taking
channel quality into consideration, the eNB may be able to balance
the tradeoff between the system level throughput and the QoS of one
or more specific UEs to solve one or more of the drawbacks
mentioned above. Note, in FIG. 10, QoS performance may relate to
performance for one or more of throughput, delay, jitter, etc.
[0092] In addition to the second tier of the multi-tier QoS
configuration, the eNB may evaluate the channel condition at finer
granularities, e.g., such as at each layer (e.g., carrier or
antenna) in a third tier of the multi-tier QoS configuration (e.g.,
for a dynamic QoS configuration). Based on the evaluation of the
channel quality for each layer, the eNB may then configure
different QoS parameters on the different layers (e.g., in the
coarse range of parameter values for the assigned UE class and/or
the range of parameter values (within the coarse range of parameter
values) at the channel quality) even for the same QCI traffic. In
one aspect, the different layers may correspond to different
wireless carriers. In one aspect, the different layers may
correspond to different spatial layers.
[0093] For example, assume that a UE with QCI=6 and QCI=7 traffic
has better channel quality for the layer for the first transport
block (TB1) compared to the layer for the second TB (TB2). In this
example, in order to put more QCI=6 traffic on the TB1, the eNB
could configure the QoS parameters as follows:
[0094] TB 1: [0095] QCI=6 traffic: PBR=infinity [0096] QCI=7
traffic: PBR=8 kbps
[0097] TB 2 [0098] QCI=6 traffic: PBR=16 kbps [0099] QCI=7 traffic:
PBR=8 kbps
[0100] As shown above in this example, by configuring the QoS
parameters in such a manner, most of the QCI=6 traffic would be put
on the TB1 which has better channel quality.
[0101] In some aspects, the multi-tier QoS configuration described
herein can be implemented at the eNB side, which generally means
that every grant (from the eNB) can include dynamically varying QoS
parameters. The UE, in turn, could perform logical channel
prioritization based on the varying QoS parameters. In some
aspects, due in part to the implementation workload, the eNB may
just implement the first two tiers of the multi-tier QoS
configuration. Further, in some aspects, the UE may be configured
to adjust its own QoS parameters on different layers based on the
real-time channel quality and the received parameters. The UE may
then build the TB according to the adjusted parameters. In this
case, the UE may have to decode all the grants and bias the QoS
parameters after finishing the decoding work.
[0102] The methods disclosed herein comprise one or more steps or
actions for achieving the described method. The method steps and/or
actions may be interchanged with one another without departing from
the scope of the claims. In other words, unless a specific order of
steps or actions is specified, the order and/or use of specific
steps and/or actions may be modified without departing from the
scope of the claims.
[0103] As used herein, a phrase referring to "at least one of" a
list of items refers to any combination of those items, including
single members. As an example, "at least one of: a, b, or c" is
intended to cover a, b, c, a-b, a-c, b-c, and a-b-c, as well as any
combination with multiples of the same element (e.g., a-a, a-a-a,
a-a-b, a-a-c, a-b-b, a-c-c, b-b, b-b-b, b-b-c, c-c, and c-c-c or
any other ordering of a, b, and c).
[0104] As used herein, the term "determining" encompasses a wide
variety of actions. For example, "determining" may include
calculating, computing, processing, deriving, investigating,
looking up (e.g., looking up in a table, a database or another data
structure), ascertaining and the like. Also, "determining" may
include receiving (e.g., receiving information), accessing (e.g.,
accessing data in a memory) and the like. Also, "determining" may
include resolving, selecting, choosing, establishing and the
like.
[0105] The previous description is provided to enable any person
skilled in the art to practice the various aspects described
herein. Various modifications to these aspects will be readily
apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles
defined herein may be applied to other aspects. Thus, the claims
are not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein, but is
to be accorded the full scope consistent with the language claims,
wherein reference to an element in the singular is not intended to
mean "one and only one" unless specifically so stated, but rather
"one or more." Unless specifically stated otherwise, the term
"some" refers to one or more. All structural and functional
equivalents to the elements of the various aspects described
throughout this disclosure that are known or later come to be known
to those of ordinary skill in the art are expressly incorporated
herein by reference and are intended to be encompassed by the
claims. Moreover, nothing disclosed herein is intended to be
dedicated to the public regardless of whether such disclosure is
explicitly recited in the claims. No claim element is to be
construed under the provisions of 35 U.S.C. .sctn. 112, sixth
paragraph, unless the element is expressly recited using the phrase
"means for" or, in the case of a method claim, the element is
recited using the phrase "step for."
[0106] The various operations of methods described above may be
performed by any suitable means capable of performing the
corresponding functions. The means may include various hardware
and/or software component(s) and/or module(s), including, but not
limited to a circuit, an application specific integrated circuit
(ASIC), or processor. Generally, where there are operations
illustrated in figures, those operations may have corresponding
counterpart means-plus-function components with similar
numbering.
[0107] For example, means for transmitting and/or means for
receiving may comprise one or more of a transmit processor 420, a
TX MIMO processor 430, a receive processor 438, or antenna(s) 434
of the base station 110 and/or the transmit processor 464, a TX
MIMO processor 466, a receive processor 458, or antenna(s) 452 of
the user equipment 120. Additionally, means for selecting, means
for determining, means for assigning, means for providing, means
for configuring, means for allocating, means for generating, means
for multiplexing, and/or means for applying may comprise one or
more processors, such as the controller/processor 440 of the base
station 110 and/or the controller/processor 480 of the user
equipment 120.
[0108] The various illustrative logical blocks, modules and
circuits described in connection with the present disclosure may be
implemented or performed with a general purpose processor, a
digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated
circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other
programmable logic device (PLD), discrete gate or transistor logic,
discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed
to perform the functions described herein. A general-purpose
processor may be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the
processor may be any commercially available processor, controller,
microcontroller, or state machine. A processor may also be
implemented as a combination of computing devices, e.g., a
combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of
microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a
DSP core, or any other such configuration.
[0109] If implemented in hardware, an example hardware
configuration may comprise a processing system in a wireless node.
The processing system may be implemented with a bus architecture.
The bus may include any number of interconnecting buses and bridges
depending on the specific application of the processing system and
the overall design constraints. The bus may link together various
circuits including a processor, machine-readable media, and a bus
interface. The bus interface may be used to connect a network
adapter, among other things, to the processing system via the bus.
The network adapter may be used to implement the signal processing
functions of the PHY layer. In the case of a user terminal 120 (see
FIG. 1), a user interface (e.g., keypad, display, mouse, joystick,
etc.) may also be connected to the bus. The bus may also link
various other circuits such as timing sources, peripherals, voltage
regulators, power management circuits, and the like, which are well
known in the art, and therefore, will not be described any further.
The processor may be implemented with one or more general-purpose
and/or special-purpose processors. Examples include
microprocessors, microcontrollers, DSP processors, and other
circuitry that can execute software. Those skilled in the art will
recognize how best to implement the described functionality for the
processing system depending on the particular application and the
overall design constraints imposed on the overall system.
[0110] If implemented in software, the functions may be stored or
transmitted over as one or more instructions or code on a computer
readable medium. Software shall be construed broadly to mean
instructions, data, or any combination thereof, whether referred to
as software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description
language, or otherwise. Computer-readable media include both
computer storage media and communication media including any medium
that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to
another. The processor may be responsible for managing the bus and
general processing, including the execution of software modules
stored on the machine-readable storage media. A computer-readable
storage medium may be coupled to a processor such that the
processor can read information from, and write information to, the
storage medium. In the alternative, the storage medium may be
integral to the processor. By way of example, the machine-readable
media may include a transmission line, a carrier wave modulated by
data, and/or a computer readable storage medium with instructions
stored thereon separate from the wireless node, all of which may be
accessed by the processor through the bus interface. Alternatively,
or in addition, the machine-readable media, or any portion thereof,
may be integrated into the processor, such as the case may be with
cache and/or general register files. Examples of machine-readable
storage media may include, by way of example, RAM (Random Access
Memory), flash memory, ROM (Read Only Memory), PROM (Programmable
Read-Only Memory), EPROM (Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory),
EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory),
registers, magnetic disks, optical disks, hard drives, or any other
suitable storage medium, or any combination thereof. The
machine-readable media may be embodied in a computer-program
product.
[0111] A software module may comprise a single instruction, or many
instructions, and may be distributed over several different code
segments, among different programs, and across multiple storage
media. The computer-readable media may comprise a number of
software modules. The software modules include instructions that,
when executed by an apparatus such as a processor, cause the
processing system to perform various functions. The software
modules may include a transmission module and a receiving module.
Each software module may reside in a single storage device or be
distributed across multiple storage devices. By way of example, a
software module may be loaded into RAM from a hard drive when a
triggering event occurs. During execution of the software module,
the processor may load some of the instructions into cache to
increase access speed. One or more cache lines may then be loaded
into a general register file for execution by the processor. When
referring to the functionality of a software module below, it will
be understood that such functionality is implemented by the
processor when executing instructions from that software
module.
[0112] Also, any connection is properly termed a computer-readable
medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website,
server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic
cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or wireless
technologies such as infrared (IR), radio, and microwave, then the
coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL, or wireless
technologies such as infrared, radio, and microwave are included in
the definition of medium. Disk and disc, as used herein, include
compact disc (CD), laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc
(DVD), floppy disk, and Blu-ray.RTM. disc where disks usually
reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically
with lasers. Thus, in some aspects computer-readable media may
comprise non-transitory computer-readable media (e.g., tangible
media). In addition, for other aspects computer-readable media may
comprise transitory computer-readable media (e.g., a signal).
Combinations of the above should also be included within the scope
of computer-readable media.
[0113] Thus, certain aspects may comprise a computer program
product for performing the operations presented herein. For
example, such a computer program product may comprise a
computer-readable medium having instructions stored (and/or
encoded) thereon, the instructions being executable by one or more
processors to perform the operations described herein. For example,
instructions for perform the operations described herein and
illustrated in FIG. 9.
[0114] Further, it should be appreciated that modules and/or other
appropriate means for performing the methods and techniques
described herein can be downloaded and/or otherwise obtained by a
user terminal and/or base station as applicable. For example, such
a device can be coupled to a server to facilitate the transfer of
means for performing the methods described herein. Alternatively,
various methods described herein can be provided via storage means
(e.g., RAM, ROM, a physical storage medium such as a compact disc
(CD) or floppy disk, etc.), such that a user terminal and/or base
station can obtain the various methods upon coupling or providing
the storage means to the device. Moreover, any other suitable
technique for providing the methods and techniques described herein
to a device can be utilized.
[0115] It is to be understood that the claims are not limited to
the precise configuration and components illustrated above. Various
modifications, changes and variations may be made in the
arrangement, operation and details of the methods and apparatus
described above without departing from the scope of the claims.
* * * * *